marinara sauce

There are no seasons in the American supermarket. Now there are tomatoes all year round, grown halfway around the world, picked when it was green, and ripened with ethylene gas. Although it looks like a tomato, it’s kind of a notional tomato. I mean, it’s the idea of a tomato. —Michael Pollan

Soon there will be an explosion of local tomatoes at the farmer’s market but in early spring, when our supply of preserved pasta sauce dwindles down to a worrisome amount, it’s impossible to think of using crazy-expensive fresh tomatoes for making tomato sauce. Even not-so-fresh looking celery costs a ridiculous 7 dollars a head. To the rescue is a marinara sauce recipe using canned tomatoes and lovage. Lovage is a lesser known herb but a must-have, in my opinion, in every herb garden. Like chives, it’s one of the first to spring up as soon as the snow melts away and a perfect flavouring substitute for celery.